The Economics of Transition

'...Her excellent book will certainly be placed on the reading list by teachers of very many courses, myself included....Marie Lavigne is an outstanding, highly knowledgeable representative....One of the book's main merits is it's very rich store of information. It contains much data and a great number of lucid and informative tables.' - JÃ¡nos Kornai, Harvard University and Collegium Budapest'...an excellent, well-informed, well researched reference book with a broad range. It merits its place on the reading lists of courses on transition economics.' - Alfred Steinherr, European Investment Bank, Journal of Economics of Transition '...an excellent introduction to the economic history of the ex-communist countries....' - F. Barry, Le Courier des Pays de l'Est 'Given its systematic and comprehensive character, this will make an excellent textbook or primer for the novice but can also serve as a useful reference volume for anyone who wants to look up from his own more specialized focus and see the broader background and to consider the distilled judgement of a long-term observers as to how we ought to think about this historic transformation.' - Robert Campbell, Indiana University The transition to a market economy is going on in Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Union. Stabilizing the economic situation and conducting systemic transformation has proved more difficult and is lasting longer than expected. The legacies from the past explain these difficulties, along with some external shocks, and with political and economic domestic factors. No ready-made recipes or structural adjustment programmes are available. The Western developed world is clearly feeling the impact of this unprecedented process.